Statoil and MusicNL are proud to present the Statoil MusicNL Newfound Talent Contest at the 41st Annual Folk Festival in Bannerman Park for the fourth consecutive year.

Aimed at being a catalyst for propelling the careers of young musicians in Newfoundland & Labrador, the purpose of the contest is to discover, develop, encourage and showcase young entertainers. The competition offers professional development prizes valued at over $6,000 to aid talented young performers so that they can take their songwriting and performing skills to the next level.

“Statoil is proud to present the Statoil MusicNL Newfound Talent Contest again this year as part of a longstanding partnership with MusicNL,” says Gisle Stjern, VP, Offshore Newfoundland for Statoil Canada. “Young musicians in Newfoundland and Labrador demonstrate remarkable talents, and we are delighted to showcase those talents at the Newfoundland and Labrador.”

Young Musicians aged 19 and under will perform for a panel of professional judges and an audience on August 5th at the 41st Annual Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival. The contest will take place the TD Neil Murray Stage for youth performers, which is devoted to showcasing and fostering young talent.

“The Statoil MusicNL Newfound Talent Contest has been kick-starting the musical careers of young Newfoundlanders and Labradorians through expert mentorship and performance exposure for years,” says Glenda Tulk, Executive Director of MusicNL. “It is one of our most important all-ages initiatives. MusicNL is pleased to present the NL Folk Festival edition of the contest with Statoil again on the TD Neil Murray Stage in August 2017.”

This year also marks MusicNL’s 25th Anniversary. To celebrate, they have teamed up with Statoil to showcase the 2016 winners of the Statoil MusicNL Newfound Youth Talent Contest on the TD Main Stage. This initiative will include performances by Rachel Cousins, Bailey Jordan-Neil, Bridget and Dahlia, and Paige Penney & The Old Souls on Saturday afternoon. The artist who takes first place in the 2017 contest will also perform on the TD Main Stage on the Sunday evening of the Festival, August 6th.

Statoil is an international energy company with operations in more than 30 countries. The company employs over 20,000 individuals worldwide and creates value through safe and efficient operations, innovative solutions and technology. Since 1972, Statoil has explored, developed and produced oil and gas on the Norwegian continental shelf and, in the last 40 years, the company has become the world’s largest offshore operator and the second largest supplier of natural gas to the European market.

Statoil established an office in St. John’s, Newfoundland in 1996 and operations offshore Newfoundland are a growing part of Statoil’s global portfolio. Statoil currently owns interests in several exploration, development and production licenses offshore Newfoundland and operates five discoveries in the Flemish Pass Basin. Statoil continues to apply deep-water development lessons learned from work on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.

Satoil contributes to communities in Newfoundland and Labrador and worldwide by supporting talent development through the Heroes of Tomorrow program. The program is designed to inspire talented individuals to strive for future success in sport, culture and education.

MusicNL exists to address key issues affecting the Newfoundland & Labrador music industry in order to implement positive change by presenting a strong voice to government, business and the community at large. It works to increase awareness locally, nationally and internationally of provincially produced music as an art form and as a viable industry with significant impact on the economy. It aims to create and encourage opportunities which will stimulate growth of the industry.

For more information about MusicNL visit: https://www.musicnl.ca

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE NL FOLK FESTIVAL

Complete details of the 41st Annual Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival presented by Statoil, including ticket information, performer bios, schedule, venue information, and tickets are available online at http://www.nlfolk.com. Photos from the 2016 festival for promotional purposes including the 2016 Statoil MusicNL Newfound Talent Contest can be obtained by contacting the media contact below.

SPONSORS

The Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Arts Society wishes to thank the generous sponsors and supporters of the 41stAnnual Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival, including Statoil; TD Bank Group; Government of Newfoundland and Labrador; Government of Canada, Department of Canadian Heritage; City of St. John’s; Arts NL and Steele Communications.

The Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival presented by Statoil is pleased to be officially designated as Fully Accessible, and Hearing and Sight Accessible. The Festival which runs from August 4 – 6 in Bannerman Park, offers a variety of inclusion measures.

The Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival is a celebration of community, and the inclusion measures allows people to get to know their diverse community, and encourages meaningful conversations that explore, embrace, and celebrate the diversity of our shared human experience. It’s also an opportunity to expand outreach, and enhance community engagement in order to stay relevant to our growing and ever diversifying audiences. The Festival also continues to be one of the most inclusive and accessible festivals in the country for seniors and persons with disabilities. A team of inclusion volunteers, and representatives from InclusionNL, will host an information tent at the main entrance to the Festival grounds to coordinate inquiries and/or requests related to inclusion initiatives.

Access Advisor, a program of Tourism Quality Assurance that validates and assigns designation levels of accessibility, officially designated the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival Presented by Statoil as Fully Accessible, and Hearing and Sight Accessible in 2016. These designations signify the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Society’s commitment to enhancing accessibility for all persons regardless of abilities.

As this is an ongoing initiative, organizers encourage people to contact them with questions and ideas for future festivals.

INCLUSION FEATURES HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights of this year’s inclusion efforts include a dedicated Inclusion Line: 709- 765-2232, a trained on site Inclusion Team, and blue zone viewing areas in both the TD Main Stage and TD Neil Murray Stage areas, listening devices, an accessible ticket line, a quiet tent, loanable wheelchairs, and a Festival schedule in braille. In addition, there is free inclusion training for all volunteers. The Festival is proud to partner with InclusionNL and is grateful to the community organizations who are supporting our efforts by lending equipment: Canadian Hard of Hearing Association and the Canadian Red Cross.

QUOTES

“The Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival showcases the skill, talent and ingenuity of some of the fin-est artists in our province, and everyone should have a chance to enjoy their magic. Our continuing work with our partner InclusionNL is aimed at offering a great experience to anyone and everyone who wants to experience the Festival.” – John Drover, President of the Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Arts Society

“We applaud the Festival organizers and volunteers for their continued commitment to inclusion. This is the third year of our involvement with Festival organizers and we are proud of our expanded outreach within the community to help diversify audiences at the Festival, ensuring that many accessible features are offered again this year.” – Kathy Hawkins, Program Manager for InclusionNL

LEARN MORE

Complete details of the 41st Annual Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival presented by Statoil, includ-ing ticket information, performer bios, schedule, venue information, and tickets are available online at http://www.nlfolk.com. Photos from the 2016 festival for promotional purposes as well as Sharon & Bram can be attained by contacting the Media Contact below.

SPONSORS

The Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Arts Society wishes to thank the generous sponsors and supporters of the 41st Annual Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival, including: Statoil; TD Bank Group; Government of Newfoundland and Labrador; Government of Canada, Department of Canadian Heritage; City of St. John’s; Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council; and, Steele Communications.